Four Christmases

Brian and I both come from divorced families.  On any given holiday, there are at least four different houses that are on the chopping block for holiday attendance.  To make things even more complicated, we live in Ohio, my Mom lives in Canada, my Dad lives in Germany, and the majority of the rest of my family are in Maryland.  (Fortunately, both Brian's Mom and Dad reside in Ohio and are within 30 minutes of us.)  This can sometimes make holidays kind of ... tricky.

We try to move our puzzle pieces around very carefully so that we can see everyone equally, and it was no different this year. It is very difficult for us to visit both of my parents and both of Brian's parents on every holiday...make that impossible.  (Don't get us wrong, now.  We would love to be able to fly to Canada, fly to Germany, fly to Maryland, and hit everyone in between, but it is not that feasible.)  We have to do what we can, and fit as many people in the spots that we can.

Therefore, this year, we celebrated many a Christmases!  See for yourself:

(Listed in chronological order.)

Christmas #1: with Brian's Grandparents and Aunt Di.

From left to right: Jack, Brian, Erin, Aunt Di, Grandma, & Grandpa.

Christmas #2: Christmas in Canada.

From left to right and back to front: Erin, Brian, Scott, Jan, James, Amy, and Marley.

Christmases #3 & #4: Skypey skype with my brother and family.

Pictured: Uncle Kerry & Aunt Tammy

Christmas #5: Christmas with Brian's Mom and family in Ohio (including a visit from Santy Claus himself!).

Again, left to right and back to front: Tim, Erin, Kevin, Brooke, Brian, Erin, Mike, Jill, Audrey, John, Leah, Ben, and Miles.

Christmas #6: Another round of Skype with my Dad in Germany.

Christmas #7: Christmas with Brian's Dad and family in Ohio.

I'm not sure how to even classify this order, so here's everyone: Erin, Brian, Kathy, Andy, Grandpa, Katy, Gina, Mike, and Grandma.

Christmas #8: Last, but certainly not least, Christmas at home.

From left to right: Erin's ornament gift to Brian (which stemmed from one of our first dates) and Brian's ornament gift to Erin.

Sometimes our Christmases can get overwhelming, but what we try never to forget is how many loving family and friends we are surrounded by, and we are so thankful to be able to be with them when we can.

Plus, it never hurts to have some amazing places to visit every now and then!